Chelsea have long been linked with the signing of Victor Osimhen while Romelu Lukaku also remains keen on joining Napoli to reunite with former Inter Milan boss Antonio Conte.
The Times has reported that Napoli chief Giovanni Manna is in London holding talks with Chelsea over a mega swap deal. The newspaper says Napoli have offered £25.6m for Lukaku – which falls short of Chelsea’s £40m valuation. Napoli want around £90m for Osimhen, so the Blues will still need to pay a large fee as part of any swap deal to land the Nigerian.
As per the report, ex-Blues and African legends Didier Drogba and John Obi Mikel are ‘leading the efforts’ in convincing the Napoli star to head to Stamford Bridge whereas GOAL has claimed that Osimhen ‘wants to come to Chelsea’.
Though initial talks were over Osimhen joining on loan, Lukaku’s departure for Naples along with the Pensioners selling some players would ensure that the Chels have the wage budget as well as cash to sign the Nigerian on a permanent basis.
Osimhen could lead Chelsea to a top-four finish
Enzo Maresca has the challenge of leading Chelsea back to the Champions League and the Italian would certainly welcome the signing of a lethal goal-scorer. Osimhen scored 17 goals and provided four assists for Napoli last season and fits the requirement of what the Londoners are after.
His output in the box could be the difference between Chelsea finishing outside of the top four or securing a Champions League berth come the end of the 2024/25 season.
A possible move for him would also mean Chelsea’s financial burden of paying Lukaku a £325,000 weekly wage is alleviated even though Osimhen would be among the highest paid players at the club.
It is for the first time that Osimhen has been receptive to Chelsea’s interest while the efforts of two Stamford Bridge heroes could indicate that the Premier League giants are also willing to consider his permanent purchase, as opposed to a loan that was mooted earlier.
If the desires of both Lukaku and Osimhen align, it would only be a matter of sorting out the finances of the deal before they can swap pastures.
